Minutes 01-22-2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

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was void of the N.C. Department of Commerce's mandatory Spanish-language notification designed to ensure that the Spanish speaking LEP community was properly informed. In order to complete the official grant closeout process, the N.C. Department of Commerce is requiring that another notice including the referenced Spanish information be published and an additional public hearing occur. Proper notice for this public hearing has been published. FINANCIAL IMPACT: This grant provided $400,000 in this community for the repair of seven (7) homes. The total hard cost for the completion of the housing rehabilitation was $311,257 plus $40,000 administrative costs for a total of$351,257. The remaining $48,743 was associated with one of the selected houses that were determined to be too deteriorated for repair. Thus, $48,743 was retained by the State Community Development Program. Commissioner Jacobs referred to the $48,000 retained by the state and asked how these houses are vetted in order to avoid forfeiting this money in the future. James Davis said there is a process to evaluate the homes, and this home appeared to have met the qualifications but had more deterioration than was first determined. Commissioner Jacobs said this seems to indicate that there is a flaw in the process, and he asked if this will be changed to avoid future issues. James Davis said yes. He said this is not a new incident, and it was discussed with the Board at a previous meeting. He said staff is in the process of making sure homes meet the specifications for a future rehab program through the N.C. Housing Finance Agency. Commissioner Rich said she had the same question as Commissioner Jacobs, and she would like the process to be reviewed. Commissioner Price asked if the guidelines allow funds to be switched or rolled over from one project to another. James Davis said there is a good likelihood that funds could be used to complete a similar project. Commissioner porosin asked if there are any controls in the project regarding the amount of rehab needed as compared to the value of the house. He wants to make sure funds are being maximized. James Davis said there are currently no funds available from the legislature, but there are monies available from the N.C. Housing Finance Agency, and this agency is much stricter on the homes they select. He said the homes can only increase to a certain value, so as not to affect the value in the neighborhood. Commissioner porosin said he is thinking more broadly about a policy and what kind of parameter funds like this should have in order to maximize resources. Renee Holmes is the Health and Homes Program coordinator, and she has worked on these grants. She said staff was initially told that the maximum spending was $40,000 per home. She said rehab specialists evaluate the homes to determine the amount of rehab needed to bring the house up to code. She said the state has made exceptions as many houses required more than $40,000. She said there is an application period and homes are selected from those applicants. Commissioner porosin said there were seven homes in this project. He asked if there were more applicants and how the projects are prioritized. Renee Holmes said the state requires that the income for the scattered sites must be 50 percent of area median or less. She said this is how these sites are prioritized. She said the economic recovery is 80 percent of area median income, and it is first-come, first-served. Commissioner porosin said the County has made housing a priority, and the state has guidelines, but those should be the floor. He said there are priorities that should be set and guidelines on when it is worthwhile to spend $75,000 on one house, versus spending that much on two homes. He wants to make sure the program is maximized.